Chapter 293

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“The God of War will be a little late due to a delay.”

When we arrived at the meeting place, a young man in a white uniform greeted us.

“He asked me to fill in for a bit.”

Wearing a white uniform with a blue tint on a white base, and a red coat draped over his shoulders like a cloak. The design, similar yet different from the black uniform of the Celestial Corps, revealed the young man’s affiliation. The Sacred Knights, a direct military force of the Order. The red coat was a symbol of the leader, making it possible to guess his position.

“I’m Johan. The current leader of the Knights.”

Johan, the Knight of Light.

The God of War’s disciple.

The greatest swordsman of the era, having reached the realm of Sword Saint.

Various questions floated in my head before gradually sinking. All sorts of trivial information sank and disappeared, and the only information that remained was the boy from that time.

A boy who lost his parents in a monster raid, was treated as a useless burden by his relatives, and eventually went astray and wandered the streets. Dirty black hair and black eyes stained with distrust. People who knew the boy at the time called him this.

Mad Dog, Johan.

He already had a naturally sturdy physique and a natural talent for fighting, but during his wandering life, he even awakened supernatural abilities, making him unstoppable. The sight of him rushing in madly, wrapped in light, was truly like a mad dog. He was both a madman and a Mad Dog.

It was fortunate that this was already after the first Family subjugation war, or else the Family would have been burning with obsession to recruit him. The Family were being beaten up and chased away, so they didn’t have the power, and thanks to that, Lucille, who had heard the rumors, was able to contact Johan first.

She (forcibly) brought him to the orphanage that she was running and took care of him with sincerity. He resisted along the way, but still, even rotten sea bream is still sea bream. There was no way Johan, who was still immature and had not received proper training, could defeat the Blessed Saintess. In the end, Johan lived in the orphanage and (forcibly) ended his wandering life.

After that, well, it was an obvious story.

What Johan really needed was the love of his parents.

It was the kind attention and kindness of the people around him.

It was the warm affection that would fill the loneliness of being alone.

Johan, who was initially rebellious, gradually became accustomed to life in the orphanage and reformed under Lucille’s care. Through Lucille’s introduction, he became Yoo-seong’s disciple and received systematic training, blossoming his talent and reaching the pinnacle of humanity.

The Mad Dog became the Knight of Light.

Now, no one knows the Mad Dog.

Because everyone called Johan the Knight of Light.

“But I heard there were only three disciples…”

“We’re just here for observation, so you don’t have to worry about us.”

“Is that so? Well, if that’s the case, then I understand.”

Johan nodded at Seri’s explanation.

Then, he focused on examining each of the group members one by one.

The first one he saw was Eugene.

“I’ve heard a lot about you. It’s the first time I’m meeting you in person. Eugene, right? The rumored super rookie. I heard you’ve already reached the captain level…”

“Those are exaggerated rumors.”

“Hmph, there’s no smoke without fire.”

Johan chuckled and then turned his gaze to Alice.

“Little miss. I’m glad you seem to be safe.”

“…Thanks, to you.”

Huh, did Johan know Alice? I crossed my arms and pondered. Hmm. Ummm. Come to think of it, I heard someone saved Alice during the Family subjugation war… It seems that person was Johan. Fate is truly amazing.

“And…”

Finally, Johan stared directly at me.

His eyes widened slightly, and then they curved gently.

It was a smile that hadn’t changed even after so much time had passed. 

Lucille used to make that expression when she tiptoed and stroked his hair. He grew so tall that Johan later stroked Lucille’s head in return. Then Lucille would pout, telling him to respect his elders. Ah, memories. Not my memories, though.

Lucille ran an orphanage and took in many children. Johan was one of them. She tried to love all the children equally, and she actually did. But a person’s heart can’t be perfectly fair. There had to be a child she cared for more, whether a lot or a little. Johan was like a son to Lucille.

To think that such a troublemaking daredevil had grown up so reliably.

The Lucille inside me is very happy.

“…It’s nice to meet you for the first time. You must be Lucia?”

Johan hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. Please, just call me Johan.”

Why are you using honorifics with me? Be consistent. It’s strange to be casual with other people but use honorifics only with me.

Anyway, Yoo-seong is the same, looking at other people through me. It can’t be helped. My body is Lucille’s body. Physically, Lucia and Lucille were the same person. Only the contents were different. Even if the vessel is the same, if what’s inside is different, it’s a different existence. I am Lucille, but I am not Lucille.

“It’s nice to meet you too. Please call me Lucia.”

I smiled brightly and replied.

Johan gave a bitter smile.

◈

‘…As expected, she looks just like her.’

Johan bit his lip, suppressing a choked sob.

It felt even more real than when he saw the pictures. Hair of golden blonde as if weaving threads with sunlight. Eyes as clean and beautiful as peach blossoms. The high bridge of her nose and the slender jawline. All of it resembled the image in his memory. No, it wasn’t just resembling. It was exactly the same.

The look in her eyes, her smile, the intonation of her voice, and even her aura.

It all reminded him of her, the one he had only been with in his memories.

The benefactor who changed his life and the person he admired.

‘She’s either her child… or a relative… Anyway, they’re definitely related by blood.’

There’s no way they could look so alike otherwise.

Lucille always claimed that she was older than she looked. And she most likely was. The aging of supernaturals is slow, and her regeneration ability makes it even slower. It wouldn’t be strange if she had a child. Could the girl in front of him be her child? Or a close relative? If they looked this much alike, it was more likely that she was her child rather than a relative.

‘I haven’t heard any news of her having a daughter… but if there were complicated circumstances…’

He pondered, but he couldn’t come to a conclusion at the moment. There were too few clues.

Johan tried to calm his trembling heart. It wasn’t that difficult. A skilled supernatural should be able to control their emotions. Let alone a captain-level one. Moreover, Johan was particularly skilled at controlling his emotions, even among captain-level individuals.

A clear mirror and still water.

The end of the sword that Johan sought and reached.

A state that can only be reached by always maintaining a clear and calm mind and abandoning all vain desires.

Because he had lost precious people twice.

Because it was so painful.

It was a state he had reached to shake off the sadness.

‘Looking at this child, it feels like you’ve come back to life…’

Johan found it hard to suppress a bitter smile.

The Great Catastrophe.

The day Lucille met her death.

Johan witnessed her death firsthand.

The sixth demonic beast to descend in human history.

A seductive yet hideous snake monster.

With dozens, hundreds, even thousands of white snakes like flowing hair.

Cold scales became armor stronger than anything else.

Casting a petrification curse on those who met her gaze.

A terrible and cruel snake demonic beast.

Medusa.

That day, Lucille fought against Medusa to evacuate the people. Of course, she was no match for her. She miraculously succeeded in buying time, but Lucille’s entire body was petrified and turned into hard stone. And Medusa stepped on Lucille’s statue and broke it. She was shattered into pieces and died. In front of Johan’s eyes.

“…”

He had reached captain-level back then, but not the clear mirror and still water.

Johan was barely able to handle the endless swarm of monsters that Medusa commanded.

In the end, the subjugation of the demonic beast was done by Karma, the captain of the 4th Division.

Karma directly gouged out his own eyes. Petrification was a curse that was activated when one looked at her face. If he had no eyesight, the curse was useless.

A storm raged. Medusa, whose most powerful weapon was sealed, fell at the hands of Karma after a fierce battle. Johan blankly watched the scene. The sense of loss that he had lost again. The emptiness of not being able to protect her. The guilt of not being able to do anything even though a precious person had been murdered was gripping his heart.

Five years had passed since then.

Johan had reached the realm of Sword Saint.

The strongest swordsman even recognized by the God of War.

However, every time he heard praise, he only felt more bitter. No matter what achievement he made, what he had lost would not return. The dead did not come back to life. Like his parents, who were murdered by monsters. Like Lucille, who died at the hands of a demonic beast. Precious things always left Johan’s side.

If he had the same power back then as he did now.

Could he have protected everyone then?

‘It’s a meaningless delusion.’

Johan shook off his thoughts with a self-deprecating laugh.

Time cannot be grasped, so it cannot be turned back.

That’s why people always had to look ahead and move forward.

He brought tranquility to his mind with a clear mirror and still water. Lucille. She is not here. There is only someone who looks like her. Lucia is not Lucille. She was not her.

“Well, then. Shall we check your skills first?”

Johan lightly snapped his fingers. Golden light gathered in his grasp. The light took shape, becoming a sword. A Holy Sword. A sacred sword that destroys evil. It was Johan’s supernatural ability. The main reason why he was called the Knight of Light was revealed.

“Come at me with all your might.”

The God of War only asked him to teach Eugene, but now that things had turned out this way, he wanted to teach everyone. They were disciples personally selected by the commander of the Celestial Corps. The God of War, who usually only accepts one disciple at a time, had accepted as many as three disciples at the same time. That meant that they were talents who would lead the next generation. It meant that they were geniuses so outstanding that the God of War coveted them.

“Who wants to start first?”

It doesn’t matter if you all come at me at once.

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
I have good news and bad news.

I recently changed jobs.

It’s a better place than my previous company with better benefits, better environment, better salary, and everything else.

However, there is one thing that’s not as good as my previous job.

I can’t commute from home.

Fortunately, the company provides a dormitory, so I’m going to live there from now on.

The problem is that I can’t live in the dorm alone, and there is no computer, so it’s going to be hard to continue the series.

Of course, it won’t be all year round.

However, it seems like the series will be published later than before.

Please understand if the next episode comes out late.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
Died by becoming a stone and getting noobed on, what a noob.

That being said, gouging his own eyes, huh? That’s a very straightforward way to deal with it.

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